Soak snow ear fungus in water for half to an hour or until it softened and roughly doubled in size. Discard water. Trim the firm part from its bottom (a separate post here has the details and photos).

Tear or cut the fungus into smaller pieces resembling petals. Wash them in a colander under running to remove any dirt. Drain dry.

Wash almonds, soak them in water for about 15 minutes. Discard water.

Put white fungus, almonds, and water in slow cooker. Bring them to a boil and cook for another 4 hours (in my 110W 1.5L slow cooker). You may need a shorter boiling time if using a higher power cooker.

Add sugar and papaya to the soup, and boil until the sugar is dissolved, 5 to 10 minutes.